Darkness
by justanoutlaw
Summary: When a string of crimes strikes out around the same time as Emma comes into her magic, she becomes the prime suspect. Snow and David know that their daughter is innocent, but others disagree. They have to return to a former enemy for help and Regina is not about to let Blue ruin another child's life.
1. Chapter 1

Snow leaned in the doorway, watching Emma and David play with their cat. She couldn't believe it had been 5 years since their little girl had come home.

It had been a wild ride, filled with ups and downs. For her and David, it seemed like a matter of seconds since he put Emma in the wardrobe, but in reality it had been 5 years. Their daughter had spent that time in and out of different foster homes, before she was placed in an orphanage in town. Mary Margaret had felt a connection to her when she saw her roaming the halls at the school she taught at. Regina never would've allowed her to adopt the little girl, though, so she stuck to just bonding.

However, it wasn't long before the orphanage went to the hospital to cheer up some senior citizens. Emma had wandered away from the group and somehow ended up in the coma ward. She found the John Doe that Mary Margaret had discovered and talked to him for a bit, before kissing his cheek. She had just seen Sleeping Beauty and knew that a kiss could awake anyone from such a sleep. Her childlike belief turned out to be a reality for their little town and it broke the curse.

It was hard to explain everything to Emma. She had thought she was abandoned as a baby and that no one wanted her. To go from that, to not only two parents-but two parents that were Snow White and Prince Charming-was a lot. However, in time she started calling them "Mommy" and "Daddy". They lived in Snow's loft that she had been cursed with for a while, but a couple of years ago had moved into a farm house near the edge of town. They were happy. Emma was doing a lot better in school and Mary Margaret was currently her teacher. David had worked at the animal shelter for a while, but quit that to become a farmer. It helped that they also had 3-year-old Neal to take care of and he was able to stay home with him.

The most recent addition to their family was a one eyed cat named Fred that Emma had discovered one day while exploring the grounds. David and Snow had gone to get him checked out and he was perfectly happy. Snow wasn't a huge cat person, but in the end, she was falling in love with the little guy. She even joked that it was two eyed cats that she was against.

Yes, things were happy. They were happy. Emma had even started to come into her magic, which according to Rumple was a result of her being the savior and a product of true love. They knew it was going to happen from when they were pregnant, when they discovered the prophecy that Emma could hold potential darkness, but they knew they could raise her properly. She would defeat the prophecy. No child of theirs could ever be dark enough to ever do something so evil or heinous.

There was a sudden knock at the door and Snow walked over to it, finding Blue and Graham on the other side. She tilted her head, raising an eyebrow.

"Can I help you two?"

"We need to talk to Emma," Graham said, looking a little guilty. "Alexandra is in the hospital, with some pretty serious injuries."

"And why do you need to talk to Emma about that?"

"She was the last one seen with her," Blue interrupted. "And from what witnesses say, her magic was going a little out of control. She made a tree limb fall and Alexandra got scared."

Snow nodded, Emma had come home quite upset about that. "I know, but she came home right after that."

"I'm sorry Snow, but the way it looks, your daughter is the one who caused the injuries. This isn't the first child to end up hurt from her school," Graham said, quietly.

Blue rolled her eyes at how soft the sheriff was building. "Stop beating around the bush, Humbert. Let us see your child, Snow. We have every reason to believe that she's the villain we've been looking for."


	2. Chapter 2

Snow was tempted to slam the door in Blue's face. How could she think that Emma of all people was the person responsible? She was only 10 years old! Yet, she also knew the only way to shut her up was to let Graham talk to her.

"Graham," she said, wanting to make sure Blue wasn't a part of the interrogation. "Can talk to Emma here."

Graham nodded and Snow lead het wo into the living room where Emma and David were still playing with Fred, Neal had already wandered off to the other room. David looked up and frowned upon seeing Blue. Ever since they found out that she lied about the wardrobe, they had kept their distance.

"What's going on?"

"Graham wants to talk to Emma about Alex, how she got hurt."

"I thought she was going to be okay," Emma said with a frown. Thomas and Ella had called them earlier to let them know she was hurt.

"She will be," Snow assured her.

"It's just a few questions about what happened," Graham said. "Were you there when it happened?"

"No."

"But you were playing with her that day?"

Emma nodded. "We were playing and my magic got weird. Alex got scared, so I went home."

"Did you see or hear anything?" Emma shook her head. "She said she felt someone push her off the slide, which has happened to a few of your other classmates."

"Have any claimed it to be Emma?" David cut in.

"No," Graham admitted.

"But many reported seeing a blast of magic," Blue added.

"And it happens after they play with Emma."

"I'm not doing anything!" Emma argued, tears building up in her eyes.

Snow rubbed her back, Emma didn't do well under pressure. The first 5 years of her life was her constantly being yelled at for things she didn't do. It was hard for Snow and David to find a way to correct behavior at first because she always took it so personally. It had taken a few years of working at it and now it felt like all of that progress was being undone by Blue and Graham.

"To be fair, Emma isn't the only child in this town with magic," Snow said, softly. "If she said she didn't do it and you don't have any proof, I don't get why you're here."

"I think it's obvious," David said, standing up and stepping in front of his family. "Blue was upset that we didn't take the prophecy seriously. She wanted us to steal Maleficent's egg to change it and we refused. Now that Emma has magic, any dark spells cast have to be her."

Graham turned pale, hating being in the middle of all of this. "David…"

"No, Graham! I can't believe you eve brought her with you!"

"People have come to me concerned," Blue replied calmly. "Emma is a young girl, being taught by the Dark One of all people."

"He's changed," Snow cut in. "He's not teaching her dark spells."

"And we're supposed to trust you? You let Regina go free and look what happened."

Snow got to her feet and marched right up to Blue so that they were eye to eye. "And you lied so I missed 5 years of my daughter's life. Now, unless you have a warrant or proof, get out of my house and stay away from my daughter."

Blue scoffed, but lead Graham away. Snow was shaking with anger when she turned to find Emma crying in David's arms. He cradled her head and rocked her, desperate trying to soothe her, to no avail. Snow dropped down beside him.

"Oh Emma, you're not in trouble," she soothed.

"I didn't do it. Not even by accident!"

"We know, Princess," David cooed. "We believe you."

"I wouldn't hurt Alex. She's my best friend.

"Shhh, shhh, we believe you."

Fred broke through the circle and sat on Emma's lap, nudging her hand with his nose until she stroked him, which seemed to calm her down a bit.

"What's a prophecy? Is that why they think I did it?" She asked with a sniffle.

Snow frowned. "A prophecy is like a prediction. It doesn't mean that it'll come true, but it could. It won't with you, though."

"What was mine?" She sighed when her parents were quiet. "I'm not a baby anymore, you guys can tell me."

David smiled a bit, stroking her hair. "Yes you are, our baby."

"Daddy."

He sighed. "It was that you could be dark, that you would do something to make sure it wouldn't happen, but that would have meant hurting something else, which isn't what a hero does."

"We had hope that we could raise you to be light and we did," Snow continued. "You're a good girl, Emma. We know you'd never do anything dark. You'd never hurt anyone on purpose."

"They think I did," Emma said, cuddling Fred closer.

"But we know you didn't. That's what matters."

Emma nodded. "I need to be alone right now."

"Okay, Princess." David kissed her head. "We'll be up in a bit to check on you."

Emma got up and turned to her cat when he jumped to the floor. "Come on, Fred," she told him and he loyally followed.

David leaned back against the couch, letting out a long sigh. Snow leaned into him, allowing him to envelope her in his embrace.

"This doesn't end here," she whispered. "Blue is stubborn. We need to find a way to fight her off."

"I hate to say it, but maybe it's time to give your former step-mother a call."

Snow winced. "I doubt she'd help."

"I think she may get it. She hates Blue just as much as us. It's the one thing we have in common."

After the curse broke, Regina was initially locked up. Then the shadows emerged and she helped them fight them off. She even saved Emma and Snow from being sucked into the hat that was supposed to bring the shadows to an unknown realm. After that, the entire town agreed to a treaty. Regina had ruled Storybrooke fairly under the curse and did have the most experience. If she let her grudge against Snow go, she'd be free. Over the years, she had adhered to her side. Like Rumpelstiltskin, she seemed to have changed. Around the time Neal was born, she adopted a baby boy who seemed to lighten her heart even more. Even so, it wasn't as if she and Snow were friends or anything. She doubted she'd be willing to help her.

"Let's just keep Emma from Blue for now and make it clear to Graham that he isn't to question her again without proof or a warrant. Blue's not in law enforcement, it should be easy enough. If it's gets worse, we'll go to Regina"

"Sounds like a deal."

Little did they know, things were about to get a whole lot worse by the next day.

Emma was on the swings by herself at recess, trying not to cry. Alex and Gideon were both hurt, so they couldn't come to school. Word had gotten around that Emma was a suspect and no one wanted to play with her. She wanted to be brave, to not care, but she did.

"Alone, Emma?" Blue's voice caught her off guard. She looked away and didn't answer. "Must be hard."

"My parents told me not to talk to you."

"I just want to help you, Emma. What if I told you that there was a way to make sure that you never hurt anyone again?"

"I didn't hurt anyone."

"Okay, but you could."

She removed her wand to create a bubble. It showed Emma and Neal playing on the farm. Emma's magic went wonky and instead of making a flower like she intended, a limb from a tree fell and hit Neal's leg. He was clearly in pain, blood everywhere.

Tears filled Emma's eyes again as the bubble faded away. Blue rubbed her back.

"But it's okay, Emma, I'll make sure you never hurt a fly. Just come with me."

She extended her hand and Emma hesitantly took it. Blue waved her wand again and they were in a dingy basement. Emma spotted a cot along with some strange machines that looked ripped from a sci-fi movie.

"Lay down," Blue instructed. "We have a lot of work to do."


	3. Chapter 3

**Trigger Warning: Psychological Torment**

Emma slowly followed Blue's instructions, laying down on the cot. Blue attached the wires to her forehead before puttering around with the machines. It wasn't long before she felt a jolt of electricity and screamed.

"Stop!" She cried out.

"This is going to make you good, Emma. This is going to make sure that everyone knows that you can't hurt anyone. Isn't that what you want?"

She didn't say anything in return, so Blue turned it up a notch and let another volt of electricity fill the young girl.

*x*

Snow watched as the kids lined up after recess, frowning when she saw that one very important one was missing.

"Where's Emma? Has anyone seen her?"

"I saw her talking to the Blue Fairy," one of the kids spoke up. "She took out her wand and took Emma away."

Snow froze, feeling her heart race. She told Blue to stay away from her daughter and Emma knew better than to just go off with her. What was she doing with her?

Finally, she snapped out of it. "Jasmine, take the kids inside," she said to her aide. "I…I have to go."

Running back to her classroom, she grabbed her bag and jacket. As she raced out to her car, she pressed number one on her speed dial and heard her husband's voice fill her ear.

"Hey. Neal did this really cute…"

"Blue, she took Emma."

The kindness in his voice dropped. "What?"

"I didn't see it. I was…I was helping some kids but she's not here and one of them said that they saw Blue take her."

"Oh my God."

"I'm going to Regina's office right now."

"I thought you didn't want her help."

"She's the only one who can right now."

"I'll bring Neal's to Granny's and then meet up with you."

Snow paused outside her car, tears welled up in her eyes. "David, I'm…"

"I know, but she's going to be okay. We're going to find her."

She let out a deep breath and slowly nodded, even though he couldn't see. She hung up the phone and sped as fast as she could to the mayor's office. Her mind drifted back to when the curse broke. As soon as the rainbow ripple overtook her and she remembered everything, she ran straight to David's room and he swept her up in his arms. They kissed passionately and it felt as if no time had passed at all.

Until she heard that little voice whisper, "What's going on?"

David set her down and they both looked down at the little girl, their little girl. The very one that Snow had bonded with under the curse and thought about adopting a million times. She was theirs, all theirs. Snow had picked her up and vowed that she'd never let another bad thing happen to her again.

Suddenly, that vow didn't seem very realistic.

Once she reached the building, she stormed past the secretary and straight into Regina's office. Her former step-mother looked up, surprised.

"Snow, what are you…"

"I need your help."

Four words she never thought she'd utter again. Back when she was a kid, it was when she had broken a vase and didn't want her father to know or when she had been picked on by some friends. Ever since she learned who Regina really was, she never thought they'd turn to each other for help again.

Regina raised an eyebrow. "You have Rumple. What would you need my help for?"

"Blue took Emma."

Immediately, she jumped out of her seat. "Are you sure?

"She came by the house this weekend, accusing Emma of being behind those kids being hurt. It didn't matter that Emma was nowhere near the kids when it happened, it's because of the prophecy, the one that says…"

"That Emma has potential for great darkness, I'm aware." Regina stepped out from behind her desk. "I know it's not her that's doing this."

"Do you know who is?"

"No, but that's not what's important right now. I can find her, I can do a locator spell but I need something of hers."

Snow rifled through her large bag and then found Emma's blanket at the bottom. With her daughter's anxiety, she kept it on her at all times but it was harder at school. Snow promised to always keep it safe. She pulled it out and handed it over to Regina, who carried it to her safe. Punching in the code, she scanned the potions in front of her and finally located the right one. Dumping it on the blanket, it glowed and started to pull Regina towards the door.

"Let's go stop this fairy."

Snow quickly texted David, letting him know what was going on. She promised to tell him as soon as they found Emma. He replied to be careful with Regina, but she knew that she didn't have to be. From the look in her eye, Snow realized that she could trust her.

They followed the blanket for what seemed like forever, but soon they had reached the coven. As they tried to step closer, they were thrown back by a forcefield.

"This fairy thinks she's good," Regina mumbled. Lifting her palms, sparks flew and slowly, it took down the barrier.

Snow followed her inside, clutching onto the blanket as it lead them to the basement. She could hear screaming, more importantly, her daughter's screaming. She rushed to the source of it, but Regina took hold of her arm.

"Let me go! I have to help my daughter!"

"And you will, but Blue has magic, you don't. You need to be careful or she could hurt her more." She saw the fear in her eyes. "I would never let anything hurt Henry and I won't let a single thing happen to Emma. Not again, I promise."

Once again, the sincerity was there. So, with tears rushing down her face, Snow stood behind her. They walked into the room, in time to find Blue delivering another jolt to Emma's body. Snow's muscles tightened and she charged towards the fairy, only to have Blue force her against the wall.

"You asked for this," Blue seethed. "I am fixing the mess, you made."

"Why don't you pick on someone your own size," Regina threatened. She stood in front of Snow and with a flick of her wrist, the machines turned off. With another, Blue was knocked to the ground.

"You can't stop me! I will make sure to take care of this little brat!"

Regina strutted over to her. "You turned me into a monster, but I won't let you do the same to Emma."

"This isn't over."

Before Regina could do anything else, Blue was gone. She turned back to Snow, who was still unconscious from being flung against the wall. She knelt in front of her, using her magic to help heal her. Snow's eyes slowly flickered open, but she couldn't move.

"You're going to be okay," Regina promised.

"Emma," Snow choked out.

"She'll be okay. I'm going to get her out of here."

Regina walked over to the cot and removed the wires from Emma's forehead. The young girl was sobbing loudly and screaming. Regina lifted her into her arms and rubbed her back, walking out of the coven and finding David standing there. He instantly took his daughter into his arms and held her close, rubbing her back and kissing the top of her head. He looked at Regina with wide eyes.

"Snow…"

"She's fine, Blue just gave her some head damage. I think both of them need to be seen by a doctor."

He slowly nodded, holding onto his daughter for dear life. "Regina…thank you."

"Don't thank me yet, there's still the fairy to deal with."


End file.
